As part of the enhancements, lenders signed up to the system will be able to receive and respond to Key Facts Illustration (KFI) requests and agreements-in-principle (AIPs), even if they are submitted through other systems and trading platforms.
Lenders will also each receive a tailored form. This will allow the lender to accept the same format from other sources, which can then be processed by the lender’s own back office system.
Case-tracking will also form part of the service, with over 20 lenders already integrating the systems into their infrastructure.
Commenting on the system launch, Mark Lofthouse, CEO of mte, argued the system would provide huge cost savings within the market. He said: “The industry savings are huge when compared to developing and implementing individual bespoke gateways. Based on 50 lender implementations with an estimated initial project cost of £200,000 and £60,000 per annum to maintain, this conservatively saves £25million over five years for lenders alone. Substantial introducer savings increase this figure.”
Alan Lakey, senior partner at Highclere Financial Services, said: “If there is a proper integration of technology, then presumably the different systems will link arms and offer a wider range of service. It all comes down to functionality and whether it works. But anything that saves time is a good thing.”
Murdo McHardy, head of product development and marketing at Scottish Widows Bank, added: “Anything that helps grow business online and opens up trading platforms is a good thing.
“However, more work needs to be done to provide an overall market solution. Brokers still prefer using lenders’ own websites, so there is still a way to go.”
